X on Thursday announced that Premium+ subscribers will now enjoy an ad-free environment across most areas of the platform, including the For You timeline, Following timeline, post replies, and profiles.
The Premium+ subscription, priced at $20 per month or $210 annually, offers this ad-free experience along with other perks such as the ability to write rich-text articles and receive the largest possible boost for replies.
But of course, there’s a catch, it’s not really completely ad-free. The company notes that users might occasionally encounter “occasional branded content in less common areas.”
X owner Elon Musk has previously expressed a goal of generating 50% of X’s revenue from subscriptions, reducing the platform’s dependence on advertisers.
Speaking of which, the timing for this change is somewhat strange. X has recently filed a lawsuit against the Global Alliance for Responsible Media (GARM) and the World Federation of Advertisers (WFA), alleging a coordinated effort to steer advertisers away from the platform. This legal action comes amidst a reported 50% drop in ad revenue since Musk’s acquisition of the company in 2022.
Another concern, as pointed out by RawsAlerts, is if “verified accounts with the blue checks, including Premium Plus users, helped with ads” but now they won’t see any more ads, “how do users on this platform make ad revenue and get monetized now?”
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